A new host of smartphone applications which map the stars and chart changes in the universe are giving amateur astronomers the chance to be the first to spot new stars and supernovae.
Look up on a really clear night and you can see about 2,000 stars. That sounds a lot, until you realise that there are millions upon millions of stars in the universe.
Two weeks ago scientists spotted a new star and called it "R136a1". They were using the Hubble Space Telescope and the imaginatively-named Very Large Telescope in Chile.
But to explore the wonders of the universe you do not need anything more sophisticated than a decent pair of binoculars or perhaps something like the Meade LX200 telescope.
It costs about $7,000 dollars (£4,500) and is motorised and guided by GPS. After a few minutes of calibration, it can point anywhere in the sky at the touch of a button. The coordinates you need are easy to find on websites like Heavens Above.
It also works in reverse, so if you find something in the sky, enter the coordinates into Stellarium, a free open-source planetarium which can identify the star in your sights.
More over at BBC Click